Biking anyone?

Hit every bike shop, tell them you budget. Lots of bikes from different companies fill the bill, just like tennis rackets. Ask the saleman if she would call other Performance shops, to find the bargain you're looking for.

What do you guys think about this one? Is it a good deal? It feels more comfortable than the drop style handle bar road bikes, like the GT Attack I rode last week.

Yesterday, I rode the Fuji Absolute 1.4 and was about to buy it, but when I went home and looked on their website, the 1.3 looks like it's got better specs and only slightly more expensive. My friend who's an avid cyclist and wont buy anything unless it's a screaming bargain thinks it's not that great of a deal.

You should understand, on a road bike, 90% of your riding is on the hoods, NOT the drops, and the narrower width and hand angle of riding on the hoods, hands above the brake and shift lever covers, is more comfortable than the elbow out riding style of "cruiser" or mountain bike bars.
Also, if you decide on road bike with drops, get a frame size that allows your hoods and the top of your seat to be almost the same level, so you have a comfortable stance that mimics the stance of the first bike. Then you get the OPTION to use the drops on flat roads when you're punching through some wind or cruising at over 20 mph.
Drop bars take up less room in your garage.
Probably, the road bike is lighter in weight than the cruiser bike.
Sizing is critical, and a whole discussion onto itself. YOU, being a newbie and probably only a cruising rider, will appreciate a handlebar the same height as the seat. That can be applied with either bike.

You should understand, on a road bike, 90% of your riding is on the hoods, NOT the drops, and the narrower width and hand angle of riding on the hoods, hands above the brake and shift lever covers, is more comfortable than the elbow out riding style of "cruiser" or mountain bike bars.
Also, if you decide on road bike with drops, get a frame size that allows your hoods and the top of your seat to be almost the same level, so you have a comfortable stance that mimics the stance of the first bike. Then you get the OPTION to use the drops on flat roads when you're punching through some wind or cruising at over 20 mph.
Drop bars take up less room in your garage.
Probably, the road bike is lighter in weight than the cruiser bike.
Sizing is critical, and a whole discussion onto itself. YOU, being a newbie and probably only a cruising rider, will appreciate a handlebar the same height as the seat. That can be applied with either bike.

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Yeah, that's what the guy at the shop said too (about people using the drop part of the handle bars very rarely). Which is why I'm leaning more towards the Fuji Absolute. More comfortable, and weight-wise very similar to the road bikes I tested. The only noticeable difference was the shifting was smoother on the GT Attack road bike and the Attack felt a bit faster and just overall smoother as well.

Price is OK. Have you spend 20 hours on research? In that 20 hours, you might be able to make up the difference by working...and getting paid.
Weigh both bikes. The lighter pays off in riding, the heavier in durability.
If you like the looks of wide flat bars, go for it. Roadbike bars are narrower, less air drag, offer options, and are faster.

Price is OK. Have you spend 20 hours on research? In that 20 hours, you might be able to make up the difference by working...and getting paid.
Weigh both bikes. The lighter pays off in riding, the heavier in durability.
If you like the looks of wide flat bars, go for it. Roadbike bars are narrower, less air drag, offer options, and are faster.

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This is a gross generalization which is not necessarily correct. First of all, the term durability is very vague. It can refer to how long the part lasts (with regular use, or in extreme situations), it's ability to withstand scratches and nicks, or dings, or it's ability to withstand breakage from impact, breaking down due to fatigue, and so on.

You should understand, on a road bike, 90% of your riding is on the hoods, NOT the drops, and the narrower width and hand angle of riding on the hoods, hands above the brake and shift lever covers, is more comfortable than the elbow out riding style of "cruiser" or mountain bike bars.
Also, if you decide on road bike with drops, get a frame size that allows your hoods and the top of your seat to be almost the same level, so you have a comfortable stance that mimics the stance of the first bike. Then you get the OPTION to use the drops on flat roads when you're punching through some wind or cruising at over 20 mph.
Drop bars take up less room in your garage.
Probably, the road bike is lighter in weight than the cruiser bike.
Sizing is critical, and a whole discussion onto itself. YOU, being a newbie and probably only a cruising rider, will appreciate a handlebar the same height as the seat. That can be applied with either bike.

OP should decide who is giving advice, what advice is actually given, and what is totally useless to you (MX bikes being heavy doesn't apply to riding on the streets.
Obviously, Adventure has some alternate views.
He won't SAY which particularly, so is only giving you part of the equation.
We're talking around $750. Lighter is easier to ride on streets, heavier might have heavier parts for ..... durability.
Adventure is saying a light DuraAce part is more durable than a heavier entry level part. No applicable again, to the OP.

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I definitely want a lighter bike. I don't think durability will be an issue, or even if it is, I'd rather have something lighter and give up a bit on durability than have a heavy bike. I rode my friend's "real" bike compared to my cheap, heavy Big5 bike and it was amazing! And one of the reasons why it felt so good was the light-weight and how fast and fun it was to ride! That's why I'm looking for my first "real" bike. =) As far as handle-bar style, the straight one felt a little more comfortable, but not enough so that I would say a road-bike is a definite "no". I'm open to both. Just looking for the best value for my limited budget.

You would need to know the individual components. I don't.
Heavier is usually used on cheaper bikes.
Light is right, if you can afford it.
Ever heard of "constructive criticism"? Let's say we're having a debate on some subject. One guy says, "this is that, this is this, this should be this"....
That is his opinion.
Other guy says, No it's not. Not true. It's a lie. He don't know what he's talking about....
Which person is NOT applying contructive criticism?

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I definitely want a lighter bike. I don't think durability will be an issue, or even if it is, I'd rather have something lighter and give up a bit on durability than have a heavy bike. I rode my friend's "real" bike compared to my cheap, heavy Big5 bike and it was amazing! And one of the reasons why it felt so good was the light-weight and how fast and fun it was to ride! That's why I'm looking for my first "real" bike. =) As far as handle-bar style, the straight one felt a little more comfortable, but not enough so that I would say a road-bike is a definite "no". I'm open to both. Just looking for the best value for my limited budget.

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I bought my daughter, a novice rider, the Fuji Absolute last fall. It's a very good slightly-above-entry-level bike. She's in LA, so bought if at Perfomance in Pasa. They did not do a good job of putting it together (derailleur not adjusted properly, brakes rubbed. When I flew out to visit, I fixed all of it for her).

RE: Bars: An advanced rider does NOT spend 90% of the ride on the hoods. If you're not an advanced rider, then get flat bars. You will be more comfortable. RE: Weigh: I'm in complete agreement with Adventure on this. A novice rider will never notice, or have the ride compromised by, an extra pound or two.

Yeah I just saw those electronic shifters in person and I was amazed! As an engineer, it makes me want to go into bike component design lol! I love the front deralliuer trimming feature. No more noisy cage/chain rubbing even on weird gear combos! Amazing. Maybe one day it will come standard with bikes. Although the idea of now having a carbon footprint with your bike (battery) is kinda not so appealing.

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Used part of my bonus last summer to buy my wife the Fuji with electronic shifting. It is a mechanical marvel.

I agree, pretty much all your riding is on the hoods. I am just a rec rider and I would say 70% hoods for me and 30% flats. The drops are pretty much misery on the body In fact I just might turn my Road bike into a hybrid considering cause I am having more fun on hybrids.

I am also a novice.
I was thinking of putting 700x28 tires on my CannondaleCaad8 to make it useable for off road trails and slight hills. The drivetrain would take a beating, as do the brakes, but it's 8 lbs lighter than my mountain bike.
I almost never use the flats because I ride a lot in the city, where the brakes and shifters would need quick access.
I basically never use the drops, my back is already bad enough.
My g/f is an ex Cat111 women's rider. She really only uses the hoods also, but she does use the flats for cruising in rural areas. Drops only for punching thru the wind or flat speeds over 23mph (out of my league).

I bought my daughter, a novice rider, the Fuji Absolute last fall. It's a very good slightly-above-entry-level bike. She's in LA, so bought if at Perfomance in Pasa. They did not do a good job of putting it together (derailleur not adjusted properly, brakes rubbed. When I flew out to visit, I fixed all of it for her).

RE: Bars: An advanced rider does NOT spend 90% of the ride on the hoods. If you're not an advanced rider, then get flat bars. You will be more comfortable. RE: Weigh: I'm in complete agreement with Adventure on this. A novice rider will never notice, or have the ride compromised by, an extra pound or two.

Good luck. Getting a new bike is exciting, and I hope you enjoy it.

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Which version of the Absolute did you get? There is a pretty big price range depending on the version. I was going to get the 1.3 for $585 (Sora and Tiagra components) or the 1.4 for $549. They also have the 2.1 for $349.

Tiagra....
I have at least 1,200 miles on my Caad8-6, the shifting is perfect, right on the click. I took it in for routine free servicing at 100 miles.
It shifts slower and makes more noise than DuraAce (g/f is my riding partner, she has two bikes with DA), but it shifts accurately.
Underload, DA shifts cleaner.
DuraAce components cost more than my entire bike.

Which version of the Absolute did you get? There is a pretty big price range depending on the version. I was going to get the 1.3 for $585 (Sora and Tiagra components) or the 1.4 for $549. They also have the 2.1 for $349.

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As I recall, it was the more expensive of those, and I got it on sale at Performance for about $500. I would avoid the 2.1. The components aren't as good, and you'll probably tire of it quickly.

Don't hang around the E ward of a hospital located close to a major highway!
All the staff has seen hundreds of horrid motorcycle wrecks.
I'm not against road riding, as I even bothered to buy a KLX650 for a trip to VancouverIsland from SanFrancisco.

So I ended up getting the Fuji Sportif 1.1. It was $800+tax. I spent another $150 on shorts, helmet, bike-computer, etc. It was a lot more than I intended to spend, but I LOVE the bike! It's got Tiagra shifters, front and rear dereailers and everything else is higher end components than the Absolutes.

It looks and feels more sporty than the flat-bar bikes and even after riding it just a few times, I can see the advantage of the drop bars. It definitely helps to get lower when you're going into a headwind or up hills (and there's lots of them near Signal Hill in Long Beach).

I'm trying to attach a pic, but it's not working. Arggh... The icon to "insert image" doesn't seem to work - a box just comes up to tell me to "enter URL or your image". But I want to attach the pic from my computer...

Great bike with the same component's I have, Tiagra.
You got the advantage of lighter wheels, with less spokes, than mine.
Just peeked at my odometer, mine has logged 1,900 miles, wore out a rear tire, flatted two fronts (object slashed thru the tire and tube), and shifting is superb.

Bought a Fuji Sportif 1.7 this past November, and I love it. I've ridden it to work quite a few times since I got it, and it's awesome. When the weather gets consistently warm, I'll probably start to ride it in more often. It's a nice way to get a bit of exercise in, and it cuts down on the gas.

My original plan was to ride my bike to the tennis courts 3 days a week, riding with my g/f on her way to work (9 miles), then another 3 to the courts.
But SPD pedals, my needing most of my energy just to keep up at low 4.0 levels, and that ride home to face work (construction) inside the house and then windsurfing in the afternoons is just too daunting for this old man.
But I can dream.
CannondaleCaad8-6.

I am going to go for 3 "longer" rides a week and then go for shorter length rides or walk or hike on alternate days.

I rode to a street fair earlier in the week and became a bit of a minor celebrity there. Several people started up conversations with me, little kids were waving at me and many others were staring at me and my bike.

I like your style, Mike.
Me, I've had multiple concussions from years of doing too many violent sports.
Maybe that's why I focus on the more visible physical injuries, like broken legs, collarbones, hands, ribs, and multitudes of sprains and strains.
My brain just doesn't want to process everything I've done to my poor body.
Oh, 2 concussions playing high school football, WITH a helmet on and strapped.

Don't hang around the E ward of a hospital located close to a major highway!
All the staff has seen hundreds of horrid motorcycle wrecks.
I'm not against road riding, as I even bothered to buy a KLX650 for a trip to VancouverIsland from SanFrancisco.

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Saw a guy on a motorcycle stop in the back of a Semi trailer while working in an ER. Tried to get his blood gases, forgetaboutit.